Died On This Date (October 17, 2007) Teresa Brewer / Popular ’50s Vocalist

Teresa Brewer (Born Theresa Breuer)
May 7, 1931 – October 17, 2007

With Liberace
With Liberace

With some 600 recorded songs to her name, Teresa Brewer was one of America’s most prolific singers of the 1950s.  Brewer began singing and dancing as early as two years old on various radio amateur shows.  She was well at it when at just 12 years old, she decided to “retire” in order to go back to concentrate on her schooling.  She released her first of many popular records in 1949.  Over the course of her 20+ year career, she recorded with the likes of Liberace, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Dizzy Gillespie. Teresa Brewer died of a rare degenerative brain disease at the age of 76.



Died On This Date (September 19, 2008) Earl Palmer / Legendary Session Drummer

Earl Palmer
October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008

Earl Palmer was a session drummer with a resume that reads like a who’s who of popular music.  He has been called the “most recorded drummer in history.”  Over a career that spanned over 50 years, Palmer played on hit recordings by the likes of Little Richard, Fats Domino, Frank Sinatra, Rick Nelson, Ray Charles, the Beach Boys, Neil Young, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, B.B. King, Randy Newman, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello and many many more.   Palmer was recognized for his incomparable contribution to rock ‘n roll by being the first session musician elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.   Earl Palmer passed away in 2008 at the age of 83.



Died On This Date (September 8, 1960) Oscar Pettiford / Jazz Great

Oscar Pettiford
September 30, 1922 – September 8, 1960

PettifordOscar Pettiford was  a virtuoso jazz double bassist and cellist who made his mark during the ’40s and ’50s.  With his mother being Choctaw and his father half Cherokee and half African American, Pettiford was likely the most famous Native American jazz musician in history.  Although most never new of his Native American lineage.  Pettiford grew up playing in the family band, first on piano, and then switching to double bass at the age of 14.  Pettiford was one of the forefathers of the be bop movement and over the course of this career worked with the likes of Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Coleman Hawkins.  He is also credited for having discovered Cannonball Adderley.  Oscar Pettiford passed away on September 8, 1960.

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Oscar Pettiford